British Cycling have denied that kit or equipment provided by UK Sport had been given away or sold for profit ©Getty Images

British Cycling has denied that kit and equipment provided by UK Sport has been given away or sold for profit, after claims that official performance kit was being sold online.

The Daily Mail revealed that UK Sport had requested an investigation that official kit, including a high performance bike, had been made available online to purchase.

“We have asked British Cycling to investigate as a matter of urgency because it is vital we protect our investment,” a UK Sport spokesperson told the newspaper.

For the 2013 to 2017 cycle, UK Sport have provided the national federation with a total of £30.5 million ($43.8 million/€38.6 million) worth of funding.

British Cycling have now refuted the claims, stating that they have a “detailed and exhaustive inventory of all UK Sport-funded equipment” from the past 10-years and that  “no kit or equipment provided by UK Sport is, or has ever been, given away or sold on for profit, or has even left the National Cycling Centre, in Manchester.”

“New kit is issued to athletes on the programme every 12 months, at the end of every 12-month cycle, kit or equipment is recycled, or scrapped if damaged,” the statement read.

“Records are kept, which include every item of kit.

“When kit is issued, riders are informed that it is the property of the Great Britain Cycling Team, is not their personal property and should be returned when they leave the programme or when requested.

“Non-current, unworn kit is also occasionally sold at ‘cycle jumbles’ – in cases where consent is provided by the commercial partner involved - and the money raised from these sales is then used to further support the Great Britain Cycling Team.

“Once sold, we are obviously unable to guarantee what individual buyers will do with the kit they have purchased.”

The claims came after British Cycling was rocked by allegations of discriminatory behaviour by Shane Sutton, who has since stepped down as technical director
The claims came after British Cycling was rocked by allegations of discriminatory behaviour by Shane Sutton, who has since stepped down as technical director ©Getty Images

The claims come after British Cycling was rocked by allegations of discriminatory behaviour by Shane Sutton, who yesterday announced his resignation as the technical director.

It followed the 58-year-old Australian, who had been in the post since 2014, having been suspended by the National Federation after sprinter Jess Varnish and six-time Paralympic champion Darren Kenny had claimed he had made derogatory comments.

Programme director Andy Harrison will prepare the team for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games having replaced Sutton, who denies the allegations against him.